Sensational young superstar – Gabriella Mogale

We are inspired by this youngster following her passion and making a difference.

Gabriella, a Grade 11 learner at Collegiate Girls’ High School in Port Elizabeth, entered the 2017 Eskom Expo for Young Scientists. It was here that her science project – her solution to devastating shack fires in townships – made this 17-year-old a celeb.

‘The shack fires in Knysna reminded me of a problem that had been going on for years in our country – and of how no-one was really working on a solution for it,’ Gabriella explains. As part of a school science project, she went on to change this situation.

‘I created a mixture out of recyclable materials that is applied on the inside of the shack,’ she explains. ‘This creates a barrier between the material used to make shacks and the interior of the shack, insulating it from the cold/heat. I also made another mixture that can be applied to the outside of the shack to prevent it from catching fire.

‘You never think you are going to create or do something great until you do it. And having come from a disadvantaged background, I have always wanted to be that person who is going to change the lives of someone who was like me.

‘By considering a solution for shack fires, I learnt that something you might think is simple and insignificant can be different in someone else’s eyes,’ she says. ‘You should not limit or underestimate yourself.’

Gabriella’s favourite subject at school is mathematics and she plans to become an actuarial scientist.

Sensational young superstar – Gabriella Mogale

We are inspired by this youngster following her passion and making a difference.

Gabriella, a Grade 11 learner at Collegiate Girls’ High School in Port Elizabeth, entered the 2017 Eskom Expo for Young Scientists. It was here that her science project – her solution to devastating shack fires in townships – made this 17-year-old a celeb.

‘The shack fires in Knysna reminded me of a problem that had been going on for years in our country – and of how no-one was really working on a solution for it,’ Gabriella explains. As part of a school science project, she went on to change this situation.

‘I created a mixture out of recyclable materials that is applied on the inside of the shack,’ she explains. ‘This creates a barrier between the material used to make shacks and the interior of the shack, insulating it from the cold/heat. I also made another mixture that can be applied to the outside of the shack to prevent it from catching fire.

‘You never think you are going to create or do something great until you do it. And having come from a disadvantaged background, I have always wanted to be that person who is going to change the lives of someone who was like me.

‘By considering a solution for shack fires, I learnt that something you might think is simple and insignificant can be different in someone else’s eyes,’ she says. ‘You should not limit or underestimate yourself.’

Gabriella’s favourite subject at school is mathematics and she plans to become an actuarial scientist.